New for Traders: CME, MGEX to reduce grain trading hours

CME Group announced it will reduce grain and oilseed trading hours. Pending CFTC review, trading in CBOT grain and oilseed and KCBT markets will be reduced from the current 21 hours, both on the floor and via its CME Globex electronic trading platform, for the Monday, April 8, 2013, trade date.

BondDesk Group LLC and The Nasdaq OMX Group, Inc. announced today that BondDesk was chosen by the exchange group to provide the real-time pricing data needed to support the recently launched options on U.S. Treasuries trading on the NASDAQ OMX PHLX(SM) (PHLX(R)) exchange.

NYSE Liffe will list its suite of derivatives based on MSCI indices on the London Central Order Book, and will begin trading its MSCI Europe Net Total Return Index futures contract on March 1.

Eurex Exchange will list its new derivatives on global MSCI indexes beginning March 11. The products will include futures and options based on MSCI Europe, MSCI All Countries Asia Pacific ex-Japan and MSCI World, and futures on the MSCI Frontier Markets.

R.J. O’Brien & Associates announced the release of the firm’s first-ever mobile trading application, RJO Mobile Trader (RJO MT). Available for clients of the firm and its introducing brokers who use an iPhone or Android phone, RJO Mobile Trader is a secure application accessible via Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

BondDesk Group LLC and The Nasdaq OMX Group, Inc. announced today that BondDesk was chosen by the exchange group to provide the real-time pricing data needed to support the recently launched options on U.S. Treasuries trading on the NASDAQ OMX PHLX(SM) (PHLX(R)) exchange.

ACTIV announced it is deploying a ticker plant at the new co-location facility of Tokyo Stock Exchange, wholly owned subsidiary of Japan Exchange Group.

ITG launched Liquidity Guard, a new tool aimed to protect buy-side orders in its POSIT suite of crossing solutions, the Trade News reported.

Chi-X Canada received approval to launch a new alternative trading system (ATS), CX2, which will be introduced in phases starting on May 3. CX2 has a pricing model that rewards liquidity takers, according to the exchange.

CBOE and C2 aim to launch mini-options on March 18 for AAPL, AMZN, GOOG, GLD and SPY. These mini options are a tenth the size of the standard options, and “will give investors the ability to hedge their positions and trade options on these stocks more economically than with standard-sized options.”

optionsXpress Inc. has replaced its tiered commission structure for futures and options with prices of $3.50 per contract.

AxiCorp Financial Services Pty launched its AxiTrader USA forex service. The new service is designed to give U.S. clients access to 24-hour trading through the MetaTrader4 platform.

Guggenheim Investments launched CurrencyShares Singapore Dollar Trust, the first Singapore dollar exchange-traded product (ETP). The ETP is designed to give investors a cost-effective way to gain exposure to the Singapore dollar.

About the Author

Michael McFarlin joined Futures in 2010 after graduating summa cum laude from Trinity International University, where he majored in English/Communication. With the launch of the new web platform, Michael serves as web editor for the site and will continue to work on the magazine, where he focuses on the Markets and Trading 101 features. He also served as a member of the Wisconsin National Guard from 2007 to 2010. mmcfarlin@futuresmag.com